Sandusky Seemed 'Accepting' of Verdict, Victim Is 'Elated' (UPDATE)

Following last night's conviction of former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, Michael Boni, the attorney representing the young man whose comments sparked the investigation, said that his client "feels elated," and that he and his mother feel "very, very empowered."

Victim 1 had described how Sandusky had forced oral sex on him when he was 11 or 12 and later demanded that he reciprocate. From the witness stand he spoke haltingly, often sobbing as he described his encounters with Sandusky, whom he first met at a summer camp for disadvantaged children.

Joshua Harper, one of the 12-member jury in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania said:

I looked at him during the reading of the verdict, and the look on his face, no real emotion, just kind of accepting, you know, because he knew it was true.

It wasn't until after the jury began its deliberations on Thursday that a lawyer for Matt Sandusky, Sandusky's adopted son, came forward with the new accusation that he too had been sexually abused by the former coach. Matt Sandusky had been living with the Sandusky's as a foster child before he was officially adopted by them.

Despite the fact that Matt Sandusky was not among the victims involved in the charges, Harper said of the surprise accusation, "We were all basically told at the same time, we heard about it at the same time, and we were just looking at each other like we had suspected that but we had no evidence of it. It just solidified our decision."

Jerry Sandusky was found guilty of 45 of the 48 counts against him. He will very likely spend the rest of his life in prison.

Update: Sandusky has been placed under suicide watch in an effort to protect him from other inmates while awaits sentencing. Co-counsel Karl Rominger said, "The judge in this case and the warden in this case decided to take a measure not meant to suggest in any way that he is suicidal, but simply to put the precautions in place first and then evaluate later."
[Image via AP]